Though overall trading activity has not increased much in the import basic pig iron (BPI) market in Turkey over the past week, the general mood has improved, following the rises in scrap prices and the still low availability of BPI.
A deal for 50,000 mt of ex-Brazil high-phosphorus BPI was done at $400/mt FOB a week ago for the Turkish market. The CFR price has been assessed at $425-430/mt in this contract. Most market sources agree that the signing of the contract was possible as some mills have fully withdrawn from deals for ex-Russia or ex-Donbass material and have limited options. Overall, this price has been assessed as being rather high for the Turkish market. Nevertheless, as for Brazilian suppliers, the deal level was in line with the previous contracts to the US, signed at $400-406/mt FOB during the month. New offers have been heard from $410-415/mt FOB up to $430/mt FOB already.
Offers for ex-Russia and ex-Donbass BPI have been rare. The SteelOrbis reference price for ex-Black Sea BPI has been at $320-350/mt FOB. “The mood has improved but there is not much talk in the market. And I believe availability is also not great, with only small stock sales,” a Turkish trader said. Small sales were reported at $370/mt DAP last week, while offers increased to $390/mt DAP.